Proposed US postal increases called 'desperate cry for help'

The U.S. Postal Service, after failing to get congressional support to change its business model, should raise postage rates beyond the rate of inflation, its board said. A sponsor of postal legislation called the move a "desperate cry for help."The service's board said it wants to raise the price of a first-class stamp three cents, or 6.5 percent, to 49 cents and to increase rates for magazines, advertising mail and packages more than is allowed without consulting the service's regulator."Of …